Anchor cable damaged on Hwy. 520 floating bridge

Associated Press

SEATTLE -- Washington highway officials say maintenance crews have found a damaged anchor cable on the north side of the westernmost pontoon of the Washington 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington.Transportation Department spokeswoman Debera Carlton Harrell said Wednesday in a statement that the damaged cable doesn't put the bridge at risk because of safety redundancy built into the cable and anchor system. She says the cable can be repaired with no impact to drivers.The spokeswoman says the damage was found Tuesday and divers immediately began inspecting the condition of the cable and its pontoon. It wasn't immediately clear what caused the damage or what the repair cost might be.Harrell says a repair plan is being developed and work could begin as soon as Friday. The contractor for the new Highway 520 floating bridge, Kiewit/General/Manson, has been asked to handle the repair.The pontoon and cable were last inspected in May and no cable issues were found.

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